AP News, December 23rd, 2007
Ray Whitney scored twice and had an assist in the third period, and Cam Ward stopped 29 shots to lead the Carolina Hurricanes past the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 on Saturday night.
Whitney gave Carolina a 2-1 lead with a goal from the left circle during a delayed penalty call at 9:31 of the third. The left winger, who has a three-game, goal streak, added an empty-netter with one minute left.
Andrew Ladd and Eric Staal, who had an empty-net goal with 2.8 seconds to play, also scored for the Southeast Division-leading Hurricanes. Carolina is 3-4 in its past seven games.
Martin St. Louis scored for Tampa Bay.
St. Louis put the Lightning up 1-0 just 23 seconds into the game. Ward stopped St. Louis' shot from the left circle, but the rebound hit Hurricanes defenseman Glen Wesley in the back and trickled into the net.
Wesley nearly tied it midway through the first, but his shot hit the crossbar. The Hurricanes pulled even at 1 when Ladd scored a rebound goal with 1:56 left in the period.
Tampa Bay had a goal disallowed after a video replay with 1:09 left in the second. The replay showed that Mathieu Darche used a kicking motion to put a rebound of Vincent Lecavalier's shot into the net.
The Hurricanes almost grabbed a one-goal advantage in the final seconds of the second, but Erik Cole hit the post on his rebound try.
Carolina center Brandon Nolan, the son of New York Islanders coach Ted Nolan, had an assist in his NHL debut. The Hurricanes said Nolan is the 15th son in league history to play a game in the same season that his father served as a head coach.
"I tried to get some quick updates in-between periods, and when I heard he got an assist I was real proud of him, just like how any father would be," Ted Nolan said after the Islanders' home victory over Washington. "He's spent a few years in the minors and earned his chance to play in the NHL, and I'm glad he's making the most of his opportunity."
Notes:@ Wesley played in his 1,416 NHL game, moving him into a seventh-place among defensemen with Hall of Famer Al MacInnis. ... Tampa Bay C Craig MacDonald didn't play, two days after being struck in the month by a shot taken by Toronto's Hal Gill. MacDonald broke nine teeth and needed over 50 stitches for cuts on his tongue and inside his mouth. ... Hurricanes RW Craig Adams served the second and final game of a suspension for a high-sticking incident last Tuesday. ... Carolina D Mike Commodore sat out with a left foot injury. ... Tampa Bay C Chris Gratton (hip) returned after missing three games.
